I recently had the opportunity to drive a Volkswagen Passt wagen W8 with a Tiptronic trans, something I've wanted to do for quite some time. The W8 has sort of an infamous history, so driving one made my amateur, teenage brain sort of excited. Heck, I was going to drive something only 300 other people in America had! Whoopee! Let's get it started!

Now I knew that the Volks Tiptronic was going to be weird, since I've been used to a stick for most of my life. But what I didn't expect was an experience so fun at one moment and so unpleasant at the next. The fun part: acceleration. Putting a station wagen with a W8 core into gear is a chilling experience. Y ou never expect that kind of oomph from a car looking like your mom's grocery-bag hauler. But downshifting was a pain. For me, that is. This is just one man's opinion. Downshifting required exact timing, or else you would get a severe case of motor braking. If you shifted too soon around a corner, the car would "pop down", if you will, and jerk you forward uncomfortably.

This brings to light something that's always puzzled me. What's with all these special Tiptronic systems? Volkswagen, Audi, Nissan and Porsche have the Tiptronic system. Acura has a "Sequential SportShift". Merc-B has the "TouchShift". Saab has the "Sentronic". Peugot has the "2Tronic". Even Volvo has the "Geartronic". If you look up transmission types in Wikipedia, there are several different types other than "Automatic" and "Manual". Why?? What happened to good ole' Automatic and Manual?

Cars are becoming too smart for their own good. With such systems as the Tiptronic, cars are losing their connectivity with the driver. The driver is no longer in control from the moment the ignition is switched on to the moment it is switched off. Tiptronic systems make this worse, because they "allow" the driver "privileges" to control his car. A driver shouldn't be privileged to control his gearbox. He should have complete control. Call me a purist, but I believe the serious driver should drive a stick shift with a clutch. Instead of spending millions on these complicated, computerized transmissions, why isn't technology used to improve the manual or the automatic transmission? Why not perfect the manual, instead of whipping up these silly alternatives made for the fat business executive who can't drive a clutch or a stick, but wants to think he does just so he can call himself a "auto enthusiast"?

I am a snob, aren't I?